Understanding Honors Admissions
The Honors Program is a restricted admissions program; only students admitted to the Honors Program are eligible to complete Honors courses or receive Honors support services. Students who are not already in the Honors Program must typically establish eligibility (i.e., successfully apply to, and be accepted into, the Honors Program) within 30 days of enrollment in an Honors course(s) or by no later than 12 calendar days before the start of the relevant term, whichever comes first. However, the Honors Program offer rolling deadlines (TBA) for students who add on or after the initial deadline. So, for example, a student who adds an Honors course 11 days before the start of term, will typically be given 7 days to establish eligibility.
To be admitted to the Honors Program you must successfully apply to the program. Prospective Honors students should possess the ability to think and work independently, to write clearly and purposefully, and to cooperate in the spirit of discovery and understanding. The Honors Program encourages applications from all interested students and accepts individuals into the program based on evidence of their potential to benefit from, and contribute to, an Honors learning environment. We ask that students provide us with information that demonstrates their interest, motivation, preparation and potential for this form of study.
Honors Program applications are given careful review by the Honors Admissions Committee to determine applicants’ suitability for Honors study. You must be accepted into the Honors Program before you can receive credit for any Honors coursework.
Honors Program applications are accepted at any time. You may enroll in your first Honors course(s) and apply to the Honors simultaneously, although we recommend this approach only for students who are clearly eligible for admission to the program.
You must be accepted into the Honors program by no later than the end of the first week of instruction for the term in which you are first enrolled in Honors in order to remain enrolled and receive credit in your Honors courses.
Students already in the Honors Program have enrollment priority in Honors classes over students who wish to join the program but have not yet successfully applied.
Eligibility can be established in several ways:
Honors Pathway One
Honors Pathway Two
- a grade of B or better in AP-preparatory Honors English
- a grade of B or better in AP or IB English
- a score of 4 or 5 on the AP English Language and Composition Exam.
Honors Pathway Three (Challenge Pathway)
Any student is eligible for the Honors Program if they submit a successful Honors Program Challenge Application, demonstrating to the satisfaction of the Honors Admissions Committee their interest, motivation, preparation and potential for Honors Program study.
Students approaching Honors via Pathway Three (Challenge Pathway) have the option of applying for either Restricted Admission (special permission to take a limited number of Honors courses) or General Admission (unlimited permission to take any Honors course whose course-level prerequisites, if any, they also satisfy).
- Students who assess into ENGWR 480 (Honors College Composition) or STAT 480 are guaranteed restricted admission to HONOR 375/ ENGWR 480 or HONOR 393/STAT 480, respectively (although students who assess in either of these ways are also welcome to apply for General Admission if they believe they qualify).
- Restricted Admission is also an excellent option for students who are unsure as to whether Honors study is for them, or whose application suggests, but does not clearly establish, their suitability for the Honors Program. Students granted Restricted Admission who go on to succeed in their Honors course(s) are eligible to apply for General Admission.
GPA Requirement
There is no GPA requirement for admission to the CRC Honors Program. Although two of the three pathways into the Honors Program (Pathway One and Pathway Two) have GPA requirements, the third (Pathway Three/The Challenge Pathway) does not.
Unlike many Honors Programs, the Cosumnes River Honors Program is specifically designed not only for academically accomplished students but also for students with the potential for high achievement, whether or not they have realized that potential already. Some students need an Honors environment before they realize their full potential as scholars and CRC's Honors Program gives these students a chance at high achievement. It also provides academically accomplished students a place to continue to grow and excel.